Klaus The Tourist

Overlooking the city streets of downtown San Francisco on a Sunday morning, I left our fifth floor hotel room to get us coffees from the Starbucks located downstairs at street level. Waiting for my order, I noticed a man and woman sitting at a window bar with a view of the sidewalk. The man had a terracotta leather jacket draped over his chair. It was a European style coat, with white racing stripes stretching down the sleeves. "Tourist" I thought to myself.

The telltale sign was that each had a coffee with the name "Klaus" written on the side of the cup. His female companion had distinct Germanic features. They were tourists. I'm not sure how chivalrous European culture is, or what their relationship was, but Klaus was the one who bought.

European tourists sitting at a Starbucks in San Francisco soaking in the culture from the window. How parallel is this to American tourists sitting at a cafe in Venice overlooking the cobblestone streets? I should go there and ask.